Continue vs Zed

Side by side, as alternatives to Claude Code. Rows that differ are highlighted; the strongest value in a row is marked. Unknown means no source yet.

Also replaces Claude Code: + OpenCode + OpenAI Codex CLI + Gemini CLI + OpenHands + Cline + goose

Continuecontinuedev/continue

Zedzed-industries/zed

Claude Codepaid product

Cost and coverage

Price

$0 software; you run it

Included with Claude Pro ($20/month, or $17/month billed annually), Max (from $100/month), Team and Enterprise; not on the free plan source ↗

Edit code across a repo from the terminal with an AI agent

Partly

Yes

Run commands and tests

Partly

Yes

Use the agent inside VS Code or JetBrains

Partly

Yes

Connect tools and data through MCP

Partly

Yes

Write commits and pull requests

Partly

Yes

Run the agent headless in scripts or CI (GitHub Actions)

Partly

Yes

Jobs covered

5 of 6 jobs

3 of 6 jobs

All 6

Popularity and activity (from GitHub)

Stars

36,290

92,013Top

—

Gain this week

Unknown

—

Signal

Building history

—

Commits / 4 wk

453Top

—

Latest release

v2.0.0-vscode · 2026-06-19

v1.25.2 · 2026-10-21Top

—

Commits / 12 wk

1,417

—

People committing / 12 mo

78+

312+

—

Issues opened / closed, 30 days

28 / 192

413 / 484

—

Facts, with sources on each project page

Runs on my machine?Differs

Yes, runs inside your IDE or terminal on your own machine

Yes, a desktop editor installed on your computer

Hosted by the vendor

Code licenceDiffers

Apache-2.0

GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE)

—

Model weights licence

No separate model weights

—

Commercial useDiffers

Apache-2.0 allows commercial use

Allowed; GPL-3.0 is copyleft, so changes you distribute must stay GPL

—

Paid services needed?Differs

Not required with local models via Ollama; cloud model API keys are optional

Editor is free; AI works with your own API keys or local models (Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp); Zed Pro is optional for hosted models and Zed edit prediction

Subscription

HardwareDiffers

No stated needs for the extension or CLI; the Ollama guide asks for 8GB RAM minimum (16GB+ recommended) for local models

64-bit OS; Windows needs a DirectX 11 GPU, Linux a Vulkan 1.3 driver, Macs from about 2015 on; local models need more

—

Operating systemsDiffers

Windows, macOS and Linux (VS Code and JetBrains); the CLI shell installer is macOS/Linux, npm install elsewhere

macOS (10.15+, Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows 10 1903+ and 11, Linux x86_64 and Arm64; no web version

—

Setup effortDiffers

Easy; install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace, then add a model

Easy; download installer, Homebrew, winget or a one-line Linux script, then add an API key or local model

—

Stars over time

Switch to Growth % to compare projects of different sizes fairly.

Continue
Zed

Focus a point, use arrow keys, or tap for its value.

Tracked daily since 22 Oct 2026. Dashed history: estimated from public records of when people starred the repo. Lines connect observations only; gaps contain no measured points.

Growth % starts at each project's first observed point in the shown range. Zero-star starts are unavailable.

Notes for a video or post

A plain summary with today's date and a link to the sources. Check each project page before you publish.

Continue vs Zed (as alternatives to Claude Code)
Figures from RepoQuarry, 22 Oct 2026. Sources: https://repoquarry.dev/compare?ids=continue,zed&product=claude-code

Claude Code: Included with Claude Pro ($20/month, or $17/month billed annually), Max (from $100/month), Team and Enterprise; not on the free plan
Continue: free software; does 5 of 6 Claude Code jobs
Zed: free software; does 3 of 6 Claude Code jobs

- Continue: 36,290 GitHub stars, 0 commits in 12 weeks, licence Apache-2.0
- Zed: 92,013 GitHub stars, 1,417 commits in 12 weeks, licence GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE)

Where they differ:
- Runs on my machine?: Continue Yes, runs inside your IDE or terminal on your own machine; Zed Yes, a desktop editor installed on your computer
- Code licence: Continue Apache-2.0; Zed GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE)
- Commercial use: Continue Apache-2.0 allows commercial use; Zed Allowed; GPL-3.0 is copyleft, so changes you distribute must stay GPL
- Paid services needed?: Continue Not required with local models via Ollama; cloud model API keys are optional; Zed Editor is free; AI works with your own API keys or local models (Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp); Zed Pro is optional for hosted models and Zed edit prediction
- Hardware: Continue No stated needs for the extension or CLI; the Ollama guide asks for 8GB RAM minimum (16GB+ recommended) for local models; Zed 64-bit OS; Windows needs a DirectX 11 GPU, Linux a Vulkan 1.3 driver, Macs from about 2015 on; local models need more
- Operating systems: Continue Windows, macOS and Linux (VS Code and JetBrains); the CLI shell installer is macOS/Linux, npm install elsewhere; Zed macOS (10.15+, Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows 10 1903+ and 11, Linux x86_64 and Arm64; no web version
- Setup effort: Continue Easy; install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace, then add a model; Zed Easy; download installer, Homebrew, winget or a one-line Linux script, then add an API key or local model

Stars show popularity, not quality. Check each project page before publishing.

Want share images and a ready video description? Open a project's creator kit.

Numbers: GitHub, fetched nightly. Facts: read from each project's own documentation, with the source on its page. How we check. continuedev/continue ↗zed-industries/zed ↗

Continue vs Zed

Stars over time

Notes for a video or post

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